Garment



Jan. 19, 1937. J. H. LE CONEY 2,068,185

GARMENT Filed June 8, 1935 Patented Jan. 19, 1937 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE GARMENT Application June 8, 1935, Serial No. 25,665

3 Claims.

This invention relates to garments, and, although designed with particular reference to undergarments for infants and children, yet it is applicable to a wide range of garments for men,

' 5 women and children.

In order to avoid the use of buttons, tapes and other fastening means, undergarments for infants and children have heretofore been made with a cylindrical body portion closed in front and back. Since it has been accepted practice for some time in dressing infants and children to put the garments on over the feet rather than over the head, garments of the above character must be highly stretchable or have an expansible neck opening to permit the garment to be drawn /up over the buttocks and trunk of the body. When the neck opening is sufiiciently large tofacilitate this manner of dressing, difiiculty has heretofore been experienced in securing a snug and comfortable fit of the garment around the neck.

The main object of the invention is the provision in a garment of a neck opening which is expansible to permit the garment, when being put on the body, to be pulled up over the feet and the trunk of the body.

A further object of the invention is the provision of an expansible neck opening which, when the garment is on the body, will return to a normal size of opening to secure a snug and comfortable fit on the shoulders and around the neck of the wearer.

Other objects of the invention will be pointed out hereinafter.

My invention contemplates, in its preferred form, a garment having a cylindrical body portion provided with a neck opening which is expansible to permit the garment to be put on over the feet rather than over the head, said opening being adapted, when the garment is on the body of the wearer, to return to a normal close-fitting position on the shoulders and around the neck of the wearer. Preferably, this end is attained by providing the back of the body portion with an upper edge extending in a slightly curved or approximately straight line from the upper portion of one armhole to the upper portion of the other armhole and by providing the upper edge of the front of the body portion with a triangular fiap extension on each side, which overlaps an upper side portion of said back, each of said flaps having its outer side edge only secured to the side edge of said back along said arm opening.

These two side flaps lie flat over the shoulders of the wearer and partially close the neck opening,

but when the garment is being put on, the side flaps, since they are fastened at their outer side edges only, permit the neck opening to extend from one armhole to the other, so that the garment may be easily drawn up over the hips and trunk of the body when it is being put on. The garment is intended to be made of knitted or loosely woven textile fabric, which is stretchable transversely of the garment, and the upper edge of the back of the garment may have an elastic 10 tape or band applied thereto in any suitable manner for insuring a close fit around the neck. This construction of neck opening insures a snug, comfortable fit over the shoulders and around the neck of the wearer, since the flaps lie flat over the shoulders of the wearer and in that position restrict the neck opening to one of normal size.

In the drawing, for the purpose of illustrating my invention, there is shown a garment in the form of an infants shirt constructed in accordance therewith, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of the garment, and Figure 2 is a rear elevation of the same, certain parts being broken away in both figures to show the construction.

Referring to the drawing, the garment is shown as having a cylindrical body portion II) which may be made in one piece, or, as shown, in two pieces, a fore or front part I2 and a back part I4, secured together by side seams l6 and IS, with arm openings to which are stitched by seams 20 and 22 abbreviated sleeves 24 and. 26. The bottom edge of the garment may be finished with elastic stitching 27.

In forming the neck opening, the top edge of the fore part I2 is provided on each side with a flap extension 30, preferably of general triangular form, and the top edge of the back part is cut on a slight curve approximating a straight edge extending from one shoulder seam to the other. The two flaps of the fore part overlap the two sides of the upper portion of the back part, the outer side edges of the flaps being stitched to the armhole seams 2E] and 22 respectively. The center part 32 of the top edge of the fore part may be cut on a curve of more or less depth.

The top edge of the back part is provided with elastic means which may be of any suitable form but is preferably in the form of an elastic band 34 folded longitudinally upon itself to form a dou- 50 ble thickness to receive between its two folds the upper edge of the back part which is secured between said edges by elastic stitching 36. This band preferably extends from one shoulder seam to the other.

The garment is preferably made of knitted material, which is stretchable in a direction transversely of the garment but it may be made of woven material which has the same stretchability.

With a neck opening thus formed, the garment may be put on the body by being drawn up over the feet and the buttocks, in which operation the two flaps are turned outwardly and the neck opening is thereby expanded to the full Width of the garment between the armhole seams, to afford passage for the trunk of the body therethrough Without effort. The stretchability of the material facilitates to some degree this operation. After the garment has been adjusted on the body, the elastic tape at the top edge of the rear part returns to normal position, causing that portion of the garment to fit tightly around the back of the neck and the flaps return to normal position over the shoulders, causing the garment to fit closely over those portions of the body.

It will be observed that my invention produces a garment having a close and comfortable fit around the neck and which presents the same appearance as a garment having a normal sized neck opening. At the same time, it eliminates the use of buttons or other fastening means around the neck.

Although I have shown my invention as embodied in an infants shirt, it is to be understood that that is only for the purpose of illustration and the invention is not to be limited thereto because it can be applied with equal advantages to union suits, sleepers and other undergarments and also to outer garments in which the body portion is of cylindrical form, without openings in the front and back portions.

It is further to be understood that my invention is not to be limited to the exact form shown since it may be embodied in other forms within the purview of the following claims.

What I claim is:

1. In a garment, a cylindrical trunk portion of knitted material having arm openings and comprising a forepart and a back part, said forepart having a triangular flap extension on each side overlapping an upper side portion of said back part and having its outer edge secured to the side edge of said back part along said arm opening, the inner edge of said flap being free and unattached to provide an expansible neck opening and said back part having an approximately straight edge extending from the top of one arm-hole to the top of the other arm-hole, said upper edge being provided with an elastic band folded upon itself along a median longitudinal line to form a double thickness, the upper edge of said back part being inserted between the two folds of said band and stitched thereto by elastic stitching and the two ends of said band being fastened at the top portions of said arm-holes for holding said .expansible neck opening in a normally closed position.

2. In a garment, a cylindrical trunk portion of knitted material having arm openings and comprising a fore part and a back part, said fore part having a triangular fiap extension on each side overlapping an upper side portion of said back part and having its outer edge secured to the side edge of said back part along said arm opening, the inner edge of said flap being free and unattached to provide an expansible neck opening and said back part having an approximately straight edge extending from the top of one arm-hole to the top of the other arm-hole, said upper edge being provided with an elastic band fastened thereto by elastic stitching, the two ends of said band being fastened at the top portions of said arm-holes for holding said expansible neck opening in a normally closed position.

3. In a garment, a cylindrical trunk portion of knitted material having arm openings and comprising a fore part and a back part, said fore part having a triangular flap extension on each side overlapping an upper side portion of said back part and having its outer edge secured to the side edge of said back part along said arm opening from the top to the bottom thereof, the inner edge of said flap being free and unattached to provide an expansible neck opening and said back part having an approximately straight edge extending from the top of one arm-hole to the top of the other arm-hole, said upper edge being provided with an elastic band fastened at its two ends to the top portions of said arm-holes for holding said expansible neck opening in a normally closed position.

JOSEPH H. LE CONEY. 

